BUSINESSES were last night urged to adopt city schools to boost failing child literacy standards in Oxford.

Assisted Reading for Children (ARCh) launched its Adopt-a-School scheme as the Oxford Mail revealed the city’s seven-year-olds have the poorest reading, writing and maths skills in the UK.

The Bicester-based charity is calling on firms to fund professionally-trained reading helpers to visit primary schools and offer youngsters one-to-one tuition.

Last night one volunteer who has worked in schools on two Oxford estates said the scheme will make a real difference.

Michael Waine, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Schools Improvement, last week apologised for the figures, but did not give any promises on when results will improve. The 2009 GCSE results in the city were 320th out of 325 local authorities.

And the Oxford Mail reported this month that fewer seven-year-old Key Stage One pupils achieve expected reading, writing and maths levels than anywhere else in England.

ARCh volunteer Don Manley has been helping youngsters at St John Fisher RC Primary School, Littlemore, for the last five years.

The former Oxford University Press worker, who writes crosswords for national newspapers, said: “It is a vital scheme. It can give the pupils so much added confidence. When they realise they can read a short story, they then want to read more and challenge themselves.

“I think the recent figures shocked a lot of people and this type of help is now more important than ever.”

Companies which donate a minimum of £375 will be given an adopted school and receive regular updates on the progress of the children. Each volunteer works with three pupils per year. The charity said a pupil survey this year showed a 99 per cent improvement in reading skills among the 500 children on the scheme.

Mr Manley, who also worked at Windale Primary School, in Blackbird Leys, added: “I work with young lads and a lot really benefit from a male influence when it comes to reading. I’m more like a friend than a teacher.”

It costs the charity about £760 to train and support a volunteer for the first year.

Schools make a financial contribution towards the service, while the charity funds more than 50 per cent of the cost.

Development manager Jane Rendle said: “Businesses could play a really important part in a lot of children’s futures for just a few hundred pounds.”

For more information call Ms Rendle on 01869 320380.